West Bloomfield women's theater program performs 'Steel Magnolias'

Brenda Lane of Northville, Emily Caffery of Ann Arbor and Liz Jaffee of Ann Arbor are members of Two Muses Theatre in West Bloomfield and will be performing the play "Steel Magnolias" at Barnes & Noble Booksellers during the month of April. Photo courtesy of Diane Hill

Two Muses Theatre presents "Steel Magnolias" by Robert Harling, which will be performed on Friday and Saturday evenings and Sunday afternoons from April 5 through April 28.

Two Muses Theatre performs in the intimate 160-seat theatre inside Barnes & Noble Booksellers, located at 6800 Orchard Lake Road in West Bloomfield.

The mission of Two Muses Theatre, West Bloomfield's newest nonprofit professional theater, is to provide opportunities for women in the often male-dominated world of theater. In its second year of producing theater, the company formed by Diane Hill and Barbie Weisserman, has produced several shows that highlighted a great deal of women in female-centered shows, but with "Steel Magnolias," Two Muses finally hits their mission statement in full stride employing a cast of six women, a female director Nancy Kammer of Grosse Point Park, and a nearly all-female technical staff. The stage manager, assistant stage manager, lighting designer, costumer, sound designer and master carpenter are all women.

The story takes place in Small Town, Louisiana, inside Truvy's beauty salon, where all the ladies who are "anybody" have their hair done. Wise-cracking hair stylist Truvy, played by Brenda Lane, aided by her green assistant, Annelle, played by Emily Caffery of Ann Arbor, dispenses hairdos and free advice. The town's rich curmudgeon, Ouiser, played by Margaret Gilkes of Farmington Hills, an eccentric millionaire, Miss Clairee, played by Diane Hill of Wolverine Lake, and the local social leader M'Lynn, played by Barbie Weisserman of Farmington Hills, are also in the cast, as well as Elizabeth Jaffee of Ann Arbor, who plays Shelby. The play was made popular by a 1989 movie with Dolly Parton, Sally Field, Shirley MacLaine and Julia Roberts.

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Advance tickets are available for $18 for adults and $15 for students and senior citizens, and can be purchased at www.twomusestheatre.org or by calling 248-850-9919. Tickets are also available at the door for an additional $2. Doors open 30 minutes prior to each performance.

The grand opening is at 8 p.m. Friday, April 5. The rest of the shows are at 8 p.m. April 6, 2 p.m. April 7, 8 p.m. April 12, 8 p.m. April 13, 2 p.m. April 14, 8 p.m. April 19, 8 p.m. April 20, 2 p.m. April 21, 8 p.m. April 26, 8 p.m. April 27 and 2 p.m. April 28.